LAGOS, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- A Nigerian official confirmed on Wednesday that an unknown number of students have been abducted after a group of gunmen raided a school in Niger state, north-central Nigeria.

Mary Noel-Berje, a spokesperson to the state governor, told Xinhua on phone that the state government and security agencies have swung into action to rescue the abducted students of the Government Science College in the Kagara area of the state by gunmen in the early hours of Wednesday.

Noel-Berje said it was "still not clear how many students were in the hands of the gunmen and how many had managed to escape", noting that governor of the state Abubakar Bello is "trying to protect the victims and secure their release".

The police are yet to comment on the incident.

The Government Science College, located in Kagara, a town in Niger state, accommodate about 1,000 students and staff members, a police source, who requested anonymity, told Xinhua.

Some students managed to escape and the school is doing a headcount to see how many students are missing, the source said.

Authorities are trying to locate the gunmen and the abducted students, deploying military aircraft, the source said.

Nigeria's northern region has witnessed a series of attacks by armed groups in recent months. Enditem

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